Paśu-ghātam is never tolerated by any person in spiritual consciousness. In Christian religion also, first commandment is, "Thou shalt not kill." So killing business is not very compatible with religious life, or spiritual life. In every religion. In Muhammadan religion also there are devotees that are allowed to kill on a particular day, not daily. Qurbani. They are called qurbani.
So anyway, Lord Buddha appeared to stop this animal slaughter. He, he was born in Vedic family, kṣatriya family, princely order. That is Vedic order, brahmāna, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra. So . . . but he enunciated a new type of religion, which is called Buddha religion. So the main purpose of this religion was to stop animal slaughter. Ahiṁsā paramo dharmaḥ. Ahiṁsā means nonviolence. Nonviolence. But in the Vedas there are recommendation, sometimes animal slaughter. Very rarely. The purpose is another. That animal slaughter is not actually slaughter; it is an experiment. Just like we experiment in biological laboratory, killing some animal, and see the physiological nervous system, anatomical. But the medical science cannot give them life. They simply slaughter and experiment. But in the Vedic system, the experiment is made by offering an old animal, bull, within the fire, but that old bull again comes out with a new body. It was the test to see how the Vedic mantras are being pronounced. If they are properly pronounced . . . (break) . . . make the animal alive again by chanting of mantra. So therefore it is forgiven.
But Lord Buddha appeared when people were too much engaged in animal sacrifice without any purpose. Actually it was for eating only. In the name of Vedic sacrifice they were killing animals and eating—a propagation for animal eating. At that time it became so excessive, paśu-ghātam, animal slaughter, that the Lord became compassionate, and He appeared to stop this. He originated a new set of . . . set-up of religion: No more animal killing. No more.